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Strange form of lightning: Bead lightning in Northampton

12:32
24 October 2022

Strange form of lightning
Bead lightning in Northampton

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A form of lightning, known as bead lightning, chain lightning or even pearl lightning, was recently captured in Northampton.

This strange-looking lightning was spotted in Northampton, amidst the line of thunderstorms that moved through on Sunday October 23rd.

Bead lightning is an aspect of a normal lightning flash, but appears to break up into luminous fragments. It describes a stage of the discharge, rather than an actual type of lightning.

The discharge channel exhibits a ‘bead pattern’ in the decaying stage of the discharge, with different channel sections cooling at different rates.

lightning infographic

It is most commonly observed as cloud-to-ground lightning, though there are a few different forms of lightning:

  • Cloud-to-cloud, or inter-cloud, when the charge travels from one cloud to another, and can appear as 'spider lightning'
  • Intra-cloud is an electrical discharge between oppositely charged areas within a cloud, often seen as 'sheet lightning'
  • Cloud-to-ground lightning is a discharge between opposite charges in the cloud and on the ground, often in a forked pattern

Have you ever spotted bead lightning before, or caught another cool shot of lightning? Send in your shots (captured from a safe distance!) right here.

Weather & Radar editorial team
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